Wichita eagle., 1887-09-10
A NARROW ESCAPE.

teen days remained, and already the news
papers of the neighborhood had announce
TO the world, in their blunt rhetoric, tina
the coats of arms of Mile. Suzanne d
Stahl and NJ. Roger de Captain were abou
to be blended, when an untoward acciden
set all at variance.
Nine. de StahI and her daughter ha,
breakfasted at the chateau While wait
ing for the heat of the day to moderate
little, Nine. de Stahl and my grandmothe
had seated themselves in a corner of tn
drawing room and were conyersing in
low voice.
"Roger," said Suzanne gayly, 'now il
the time TO redeem your promise. TAX
me to the Hermitage as yOu said yol
would"
/ had given this name TO a small, iso
lated summer house. kind Of thatchet
shed, which | had built for my own use il
a grove behind the chateau 1t was my
favOrire retreat, on account Of its. rustic
appearance and solitude, the silence of The
spot being broken only by the shrill erie:
Of distant peacocks and guinea fowls.
We stole off nOiselessly, and taking &
short cut went out through hidden gate
opening into the fields. For time VIZ
tripped merrily along under an arbor o.
chestnut trees and climbing vines.
She had slightly raised her riding habit
holding up the train with her left hand.
pushed hurdle, and we started along
the outskirts of vast meadow, down q
narrow, worn path, fringed with a hedge
where, in the spring time, myrtles, lilacs
and wild roses Powered pell nell amid the
hawthorn bushes. Here, everything, un-
trimmed and unframed, grew up in a
natural disorder that delighted me-
remember that, from the moment shs
stepped into the little path, and set out
through the wide meadow, where all the
fragrance of spring seemed to float uu
through the clear air beneath the blue,
cloudless sky, it seemed tome that nature
had bedecked herself with her brightest
jewels to receive nay fiancee. and, uncon.
Sciously, repeated TO myself the words OF
the poet:
Down the narrow path tripped my sweet,
Flowers springing up beneath her feet.
She ran ahead of ME, merrily, joyfully,
now and then uttering delightful little
screams, az a startled bird fitted out o..
the bushes or a too hasty bee inadvert-
emily grazed her hand or cheek. let he,
talk on, seldom interrupting her, toe
busily engaged in watching her graceful
movements. Yes, / will acknowledge
that | loved her without reserve l felt
proud in introducing her to this little nook
that | had created for myself alone, where
no foot but mine had left it's print, where
some one of my thoughts still rested OF
each blade Of grass and shrub leaf.
A warm breeze, redolent of the fra.
~ no oil In b,~
twigs tre,nble, the white flowers simmer.
ing like pale flames. A world of buzzine
insects was humming, chirruping, playing
and flying about Us, while, overhead, the
great sun shone in all his mc icSty. My
dog Toby shared in the common JOY, and
gamboled across the meadow ar rolled in
the sweet scented grass. In 10Y rapture
L was ready to swear that everything
around lived, moved, shone or bloomed
for us alone. l loved this earth, radiant
and beautiful as betrothed maiden, and
from the depths of my soul blessed that
sisterly affection of Dame Nature dis.
played in the brightness of the day, the
fragrance of the flowers and the songs OF
the birds.
All the while my own true love, my
beautiful amazon, blithely tripped along
ahead of me, and, as she confided to me
all her dreams and hopes of happiness
soon TO be realized, she gaylv swung hel
riding whip about her. While sporting
in this way she would now and then in.
advertently touch the frail stems of haw.
thorn, and tic detached flowers. flutterine
like silvery butterflies. would fall to the
ground.
A fancy for this amusement seemed to
grow upon her, and the flowers, adroitly
switched Off, continued 10 drop right and
left, while the bushes, denuded of their
ornaments, appeared to me 10 be reproach-
fully holding up to my gaze their mutt
lated stems, like so many bruised fingers.
Roger said she, laughingly, look,
it is showing
In fact, the white flakes fell faster and
strcwed the path.
l made 40 reply. Without being abk
to account for it L felt somewhat annoyed
How could help it? All that surrounded
me, the meadow, the trees, the hedge with
its hawthorn, its lilacS and its wild roses,
all had, as it were, become with time
part of myself, so it seemed 10 me that
each flower that fell was part of myself
dropping TO the earth, and to avoid tread.
ing on them | instinctively turned my
footsteps aside.
Yet, remember it well. she was at that
very moment speaking of the poor who
are oppressed, Of the lowly who are dis
dained; of the pleasure she derived from
going to their aid, and as she spoke she
would raise her arm, switch her whip
around and tufts of hlacs would bend
down and hang dropping like lifeless locks
of hair.
Against my viii ] became sad. | felt
like checking her arm.
''After ALL" reflected l, she does not
think of what she is doing
Suzanne, said / to her. what are
you DOING
"Who, l." she replied gayly; why,
don't you see, am amusing myself
And the cruel riding whip, welded by a
skillful hand, switched right and left, up
and down, while rose leaves were scat
tered, Lilac petals stripped off and daisies
decapitated. With sweet smile on her
lips she, the young girl, was extirpating
the flowers.
"Yet" 1 said to myself, they have
done her no harm. None of them, I am
sure, have got in her way; not one has
pricked her fingers, or even grazed her
dress. Why then should she chastise
hemi And still, what can ! say
to her nowf She does not understand"
So great was my fear of appearing
ridiculous that I hardly dared say any
thing.
suzanne" at length risked ]. in a
tone which tried to render jocose, "you
do not reflect. They suffer"
TheyIwho,' queried she. half turning